Parlour Diner (64 Chapel St, Windsor, Victoria)
Rockwell and Sons (288 Smith St, Collingwood, Victoria)
Kang Nam Station (329 Queen St, Auckland)
This was average Korean fried chicken. The portion was generous but the quality of chicken was average. Surely there are better Auckland Fried Chicken options .
Hollywood and the boys were out on a friday night and were talking the big talk about having another visit to the colonel to check out how he competes with the Melbourne Fried Chicken scene. After a big night of drinks in some of Melbourne’s great establishments, Hollywood and CS (The Tan) ended up at KFC and had a very greasy adventure.
We ordered a few regular pieces and the wicked wings. The regular pieces were very greasy and the wicked wings were ok.
Hollywood and The Tan agreed that this was a very bad experience and this is a dangerous place. There are far better options to consider. Do yourself a favor and skip this place.
Hollywood’s Rating: 3.5/10 Clucks
Hollywood and the boys were celebrating the beginning of Movember and their cleanly shaven upper lips and what better way to celebrate than sinking down a few cold brews and gobbling down some good ol crispy Melbourne Fried Chicken
Le Joint was on Hollywood’s radar ever since it popped up on the webby web as a cool funky place with good burgers and chooks. Also we all had an urge to get our fortune told by the one and only Zoltar!
We reached there and got a few Dos Blockos beers and went for 3 orders of the southern fried chicken along with one serve of chips to share.
The chicken arrived in a portion of 3 pieces accompanied with a corn aioli dipping sauce. We struggled a bit to start as the pieces were steaming hot which was a good testimony to how fresh the chooks were. They were lightly spiced, and very tender. The drumstick was the only boned piece while the breast and thigh pieces were boneless. The skin was crispy and single coated. Overall the chicken was good with a good price to portion ratio and sat well with the Mo Bros however Hollywood found that it couldve been heavier with the spices and a bit extra greasy to his liking. The chips seemed reheated and weren’t that good.
Le Joint is a really cool funky place to check out and the chicken there is good. Next visit we shall try their famous wagyu burger. Extra points for the famous Zoltar.
Hollywood’s Rating: 7/10 Clucks
Eric and CS’s Rating: 8/10 Clucks
The Spice Girl and Hollywood were looking forward to visiting Golden Fields for another Melbourne Fried Chicken adventure. Golden Fields is in St Kilda and boasts a great menu with the chicken being served on Sundays and Wednesdays only.
We were told that the chicken is 9 pieces and comes with various dipping sauces. So we added to that order the twice cooked duck (with steamed bread, vinegar and plum sauces) and sauteed mixed greens.
The duck came out first and it was so amazing. It was crispy with the meat being so moist and falling apart. We had fun making yummy sandwiches using the bread and sauces. The sauteed mixed greens were very tasty as well.
The fried chicken consisted mainly of wings and thigh pieces and seemed to be single coated and not spiced at all. The first couple of pieces seemed greasy but we found the treasure in golden field’s golden fried chooks being the side dipping sauces. There was a mayo, a chili sauce, and an amazing vinaigrette sauce. The chicken was OK but The main stars that managed to bring everything together were the sauces especially the vinaigrette sauce.
We had our eyes set on desserts and went for the Peanut butter parfait, salted caramel and soft chocolate. It was just the right blend and very heavenly and quite literally “took the cake”.
Hollywood’s Rating: 6/10 Clucks
The Spice Girl’s Rating: 7/10 Clucks
All the god points were earned by the duck and amazing dessert
*Sorry about some of the bad quality photos
It is a rare opportunity when one of your favorite restaurants offers to let you behind the curtain and peek inside the deep fryer. So brought our friend Robyn and we jumped at the chance to spend the evening with Casey Wall watching how the chicken is cut, brined, marinated in buttermilk, dredged and fried. The whole cooking class was arranged by our new friend The Hospitality Widow (check out her blog: http://www.thehospitalitywidow.com/)
The Chick made the mistake of coming hungry, and the buttermilk biscuits were already in the oven and the smell wafted around the restaurant, making it hard to concentrate on the lesson at hand. But Casey was compelling in the way that experts in their environment are. He deftly took a 1Kg chicken and turned it into 8 pieces destined for the fryer. He spoke of using the extra bits for stock (“never buy stock!”) and to be sure to cut the medallion of meat between the breast and the thigh (“don’t trust a butcher who doesn’t take the time to cut the medallion, if he can’t be bothered with that, how clean can his shop be?”).
We learned how to make a spicy brine: use the lemon peel, but not the juice.
We learned that buttermilk should come from the Butter Factory, not the supermarket.
We learned to add a bit of flour into the marinade for the second round: giving it that double-coated effect.
We learned that the dredging flour mix is best when it is a little “dirty” but not too much. So the first pieces will need a second dunk in the buttermilk to get the right kind of coating.
We learned that the best Fried Chicken he knows of is pan fried by an old woman in North Carolina, and you have to get there by 10:30 if you want to get some lunch. She takes her time, and that’s the idea. You can’t rush perfection.
Finally, we learned that Fried Chicken is a sometimes food, even in the South. Which is why he only prepares them on Wednesdays; to keep them special, just the way he learned growing up in North Carolina.
Hollywood and The Chick enjoyed discovering the hot sauce bottle (oddly absent from normal Wednesday servings) and devoured the biscuit, chicken and coleslaw. We even went back for seconds and The Chick was thrilled to take home the leftovers in aluminum foil. Yes, the flavors get better with a bit of time in the fridge, and while they aren’t crispy anymore, the spice comes through for a tasty lunch.
Hollywood’s Rating: 8.5/10
The Chick’s Rating: 9/10
Hollywood and The Chick rallied the foodie troops and invaded Rockwell and Sons in hopes of witnessing Melbourne Fried Chicken nirvana. There were chefs and experts from around the world waiting to sample one of the best southern fried chicken dishes of Melbourne.
The order was pretty much the same exact order as last time which included two full orders of the golden chooks accompanied with deviled eggs, mac-n-cheese, and a side order of the brussel sprouts, beetroot salad and the ribs. The reliable broccoli with sultanas was on holiday, a well prepared cauliflower dish took its place.
We didn’t hit chicken nirvana this time. The chicken was good but not the amazesauce it was last time, maybe it was all the hype that led to our disappointment. All of us generally felt that the chicken seemed of a poorer quality and a bit more greasy. Another suggestion from our guests was it was lacking a dipping sauce (or possibly mashed potatoes) to add extra flavor. The Chick was always a fan of the spicy dipping sauces at other places.
Bottom line is this experience was not close to chicken nirvana and although the chicken was not sweet but being right certainly was for Hollywood. Our search for the best fried cluckers Melbourne has to offer continues, perhaps we’ll know more after our lesson from the Rockwell and Sons chef this week.
Hollywood’s Rating: 8/10 Clucks
The Chick’s Rating: 7/10 Clucks
The Chick’s new fancy camera takes some getting used to, so while some of these shots came out great, others were far too fuzzy to be included. Next purchase: macro lens.
So Golden…
KFC Style biscuit
Another perspective on the mountain of golden friend morsels
Balanced meal
Can never go wrong with mac n’ cheese, especially with extra cheese on top
Crunchy slaw, not too much dressing
Brussel sprouts fried to within an inch of their lives
Sweet Ribs
Ravaged Drumstick
The Chick was up in sunny Sydney for work and Hollywood swung by to join in on some good ol Sydney fried chicken and see how it compared to our beloved Melbourne Fried Chicken.
We ended up visiting the same joint, Jazz City Milk Bar, after being informed that their Diner was closed. We had been attempting to go and experience their new BBQ grill, which was under construction last time. We missed our chance, but it was a fine excuse to enjoy the savory options at the Milk Bar.
We ordered the Texas Chilli Burger gone ultimate, southern fried chicken and waffles and The Chick’s favourite soul food; mac-n-cheese. Hollywood tried for the German Chocolate cake, then the banana cream pie, when both options were out he ended up with a chocolate pecan pie. As with all the other dishes this was packed with flavor and high fat goodness.
The service was oddly lackluster, with three waitresses standing behind the counter chatting and on the phone until we managed to catch their attention. But Jazz City delivered on the stuff that matters and it was purely amazing. Check out the photos of our revisit below (can you tell the Chick invested in a new camera?).
There was a heated argument brewing between Hollywood and The Chick about the future of the chicken scene. This began shortly after experiencing chicken nirvana at Rockwell and Sons. The Chick’s argument was that there’s no point in continuing the Melbourne Fried Chicken hunt since they found the number one golden chooks. Hollywood however thought there are many feathered adventures in their future and was determined to leave no chicken unclucked.
After lots of discussion, the Chick consented to another round, and accompanied with friend of the blog The Jasonator, head over into the belly of the B.East for their next Melbourne Fried Chicken adventure. The Chick hates being right about these things.
The place had a cool northern suburb funky bar vibe. The B.East’s big hype was their Beast burger standing huge with three burger patties and six bacon rashers with a challenge of eating it in less than 3 minutes to be inducted into their wall of fame.
We ordered the Beast with fries, jalapeño poppers, 2 serves of southern fried chicken (as we were informed each serve consists of only 2 pieces) and a slaw salad in addition to beers and the Bloody Sunday special cocktail: Italian Bloody Mary.
The Bloody Mary came out first and it was exotic, very cool and tasty. The best description is that it was like a liquid pizza pie, including a dusting of parmesan.
The poppers, chicken and slaw arrived all together. The poppers were disappointing as they were a bit crunchier than expected and the cheesy and spicy flavours that you would expect weren’t prominent. The slaw was average and the chicken was the biggest disappointment of all. It was hot but seemed very greasy, flavorless, and lacked any spices. The chicken meat seemed mushy somehow and fell off the bone in a less than appetizing way. This was a total miss! Maybe Sunday nights aren’t the best for a fresh chook.
The Beast burger was very juicy and meaty which sat well with us. The meat did seem overwhelming at certain moments but overall sat very well with Hollywood and he reckons he could definitely smash it in less than 3 minutes but that might be a different mission (without the Chick wondering at the point).
Overall the B.east is a fun bar to go to but the chicken is definitely not a dish to be had there. This confirmed The Chick’s earlier point and although Hollywood still had high hopes for Melbourne’s clucks the “I told you so” look he copped might’ve been well deserved.
Hollywood’s Rating: 4.5/10 Clucks
The Chick’s Rating: 4/10 Clucks
Back from the US and time for some good ol’ Melbourne Fried Chicken. Next on the list: Belle’s Diner on Gertrude Street in Fitzroy. What better way to celebrate a return to Melbourne than greasing up with some delicious Melbourne Fried Chicken.
Belle’s is a diner style joint with a discrete sign. We settled in at the bar since the tables were all reserved and the Chick wasted no time ordering deep fried pickles. After perusing the menu the full order went in: side green salad, mac n’ cheese (feta, gouda and cheddar), Jalapa Burger (with Jalapeños) and the Southern Fried Chicken with Slaw accompanied with Sparkling white wine and a Hawthorn Pilsner.
The fried pickles came out quickly and The Chick fell in love with them. A little hot sauce and the creamy dip mixed well with the salty/sour nuggets. Order these!
Shortly afterwards the rest of the food came out. The Jalapa burger was ok, our main beef: it was a bit too bready and on the under cooked side. The mac-n-cheese was perfect: cheesy and creamy in all the right places and came in a generous portion with a crispy/salty breadcrumb topping.
The fried chicken was more tenders-style, no bones. It was about 6-8 pieces, single coated, lightly spiced, fresh and steamy. It was a bit over salted but that didn’t stop up from smashing the whole plate. The nice twist to it were the sides of tasty BBQ sauce (smokey and a touch sweet) and the slaw (a healthy portion). The chicken was good but didn’t compete at the top of the class with other Melbourne Fried Chicken contenders.
Conclusion: Belle’s diner is a cool place with a retro style vibe, quick service and good food. It has some good menu options to offer and is well worth a visit. The fried chicken is above average and will fill you up so give it a try!
Hollywood’ Rating: 7/10 Clucks
We were on an epic road trip in the US and we were somewhere between Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon in a town called Williams, Arizona. We were tired and hungry. Hollywood was eager for his first Authentic American Diner experience and was informed by The Chick that they generally are a hit and miss (mostly miss).
We were also on the famous Route 66 and that’s where we found Goldie’s Route 66 Diner. We were a gang of four but only Hollywood was bold enough to order the Chicken. It was lunch time but the chicken was in the dinner section of the menu, cooked in the diner’s “homemade batter”. Thankfully, the waitress allowed us to order any of the items on the menu regardless of time of the day.
The Chicken came with a very basic “salad”, bland lettuce, tomato carrot and a heaping of pre-shredded american cheese. The sides were mashed potatoes and gravy, canned green beans and biscuits. At first the chicken seemed fresh and hot however after delving deeper into the pieces we noticed that the pieces got cold really quickly which made us suspect that it may have been pre cooked and dipped in the frier. The chicken was average and only lightly spiced. It was nothing special compared to our Melbourne Fried Chicken experiences. All the side dishes seemed bland and uninteresting. Most of the meal went uneaten.
Now Hollywood knows that most American diners are a source of generic American fare and cannot compete for the favor of our foodie Australian taste buds. Thankfully there are specialty shops in America that do compete, but this was not one of them.
The Chicken Scene 